MAGIX Smart Rendering and Sony DVD Architect Studio

[JohnnyO]

I have discovered that MAGIX Movie Edit Pro's smart rendering can cause a problem in Sony DVD Architect Studio.

MAGIX supports smart rendering. not only for MPEGS, but for all formats including DV-AVI. So if you have a non-edited DV-AVI clip in MEP and export it to a DV-AVI, the DV-AVI clips that have no effects applied will just get copied and not re-rendered. If you have a transition between these clips, the video will get rendered where the transition is.

I created a video in MEP 15 Plus and exported it to DV-AVI. The video had sone DV-AVI clips in it. I imported this video into Sony DVD-Architect Studio 4.5.
The DV-AVI clips that had no effects applied were black, except where the transitions were.

After mucch headache trying to figure this out, I figured it was the smart rendering causing the problem. So I turned off smart rendering in MEP and when this video was imported into SONY DVDAS, it was fine.

The exported DV-AVI created with MEP 15 Plus with smart rendering turned on plays fine in MEP15 plus, PRE7 as well as windows Media Player. Just not in Sony DVDAS 4.5.

I believe this is a bug in the Sony software.

[Bob]

Interesting, but, given the time that dv-avi has been around, it's very difficult to believe that DVDAS is having problems with standard dv-avi. It's much easier to think that MEP may be doing something funny. Could you upload a short sample of footage that DVDAS can't handle so we can look under the hood and see if there's anything we can spot?

[JohnnyO]

Could you upload a short sample of footage that DVDAS can't handle so we can look under the hood and see if there's anything we can spot?

I will try to create a small clip later and upload it.

[Steve Grisetti]

I'm with Bob. DV-AVIs should work perfectly in DVD Architect. (The program will, of course, need to re-encode them to VOB files when you create the DVD.)

Have you tried exporting a DVD quality MPEG from Magix and plugged that into DVD Architect?

[AVITRY]

I found this post very interesting. While not specifically related to MEP I also have enormous problems trying to import a dv-avi from PE2 into DVDWorkshop after any timeline edit at all to the original dv-avi.

This seems strangely similar in symptoms in that if I simply capture the dv-avi from its source ( which is digital canopus300) into PE2 and look at it on the PE timeline, then import to DVDWS, all is fine. If I even so much as clip a second off the footage, add a transition or any other edit at all, the re-rendering of the dv-avi creates all kinds of issues in DVDWS. (specifically for me its jittery playback like a field order issue)

This information regarding MEP may be a clue to a more generic fix for this issue in general across different softwares. I'm going to do some more experimenting.

[JohnnyO]

I'm with Bob. DV-AVIs should work perfectly in DVD Architect. (The program will, of course, need to re-encode them to VOB files when you create the DVD.)

Hmmm. So the DV-AVI produced by MAGIX Movie Edit Pro 15 plus plays fine in Winfdows Media player, MAGIX MEP 15 Plus and PRE 7.

I agree it should play fine in Sony DVD Architect Studio 4.5 but it doesn't. Sounds like a Sony bug to me.

Anyhow, I am making a very shprt clip right now and will upload it shortly.

[JohnnyO]

Have you tried exporting a DVD quality MPEG from Magix and plugged that into DVD Architect?

DVD Quality MPEG is not a problem. Only DV-AVI, and only when smart rendering in MEP15 Plus is on.

There is somethis different about the video that is rendered in MEP 15 Plus compared to the video that is not rendered due to smart rendering.

Never the less, MEP15 Plus, PRE7 and Windows Media Player all handle the video just fine. DVD Architect Studio does not. My solution is to turn off smart rendering and it is OK. Producing DVD wuality MPEG wil also work and is another solution.

I created a small 23 second clip which was 85.6MB and am trying to upload it. DV-AVI is very large. The Moviepix upload page has hung. I guess the file was too big.

I will try to create a smaller file to see if that will work.

[JohnnyO]

A 10 second clip comes in at 39MB. Muvipix hangs when uploading that file also

[Chuck Engels]

Johnny, If I try to upload a file that size to Muvipix it would take about 30 minutes.
How long did you wait before deciding it was hanging?

[JohnnyO]

I waited 5 minutes. I will try again and just leave it.

But before I do this, can folks download the file? I don't see that option unless it is just automatic.

[Chuck Engels]

Once the file is uploaded they will have the option to Right click on the file and select "Save Target As".
That will allow them to download the file.

[JohnnyO]

Thnnaks Chuck.

Bob - I uploaded the file. Her eis the link:

http://muvipix.com/cpg/albums/userpics/10269/JohnnyOTestVideo2.AVI

[Chuck Engels]

Johnny, I fixed the link for you.
The link you had was a direct link to the most recently uploaded file.
As soon as someone else uploaded a file your video would no longer be attached to it, the new video would be.

You need to actually click on your video and go to the file in the gallery.
There you will see two different links, one directly to the file and one for the gallery location of the file

[JohnnyO]

Thanks Chuck

[Bob]

I was able to download the video sample. The bad news is that everything I have can read it and play it including Sony DVD Architect Studio 4.5 -- I can't reproduce your problem. I am using Vista Home Premium 32 bit.

I do have one clue. Gspot says that your file, while DV-AVI Type 2, is using OpenDML v2.0. If I create a Premiere Elements project and export your movie, Gspot shows it to be DV-AVI Type 2, but AVI v1.0 not OpenDML v2.0. There are known issues with Microsoft's support of OpenDML v2.0 on Windows XP. Microsoft's support of that format is incomplete. Files created using the Microsoft avi mux filter work fine, but it's quite possible to create files with a non-microsoft avi mux filter that create valid files that meet the OpenGML v2.0 specification, but which will not play with Microsoft's direct show filters. I'm wondering if this may be part of the problem. Perhaps the OpenDML support in Vista has corrected this, I don't know. Perhaps someone else with Vista installed can try this file and see if it works on their system also to eliminate my system as being somehow unique.

I don't have DVDAS installed on Windows XP, so I can't test in that environment.